Dying Young From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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search Dying Young is a 1991 American
romance film, directed by
Joel Schumacher. It is based on a novel of the same name by
Marti Leimbach, and stars
Julia Roberts and
Campbell Scott with
Vincent D'Onofrio,
Colleen Dewhurst and
Ellen Burstyn. The original music score was composed by
James Newton-Howard.
PlotHilary O'Neil (
Julia Roberts)
is a pretty, outgoing yet cautious young woman who has had little luck
in work or love. After recently parting ways with her boyfriend when she
caught him cheating, Hilary finds herself living with her eccentric
mother (
Ellen Burstyn).
One day, Hilary answers an ad in a newspaper for a nurse only to find herself being escorted out before the interview starts.
Victor Geddes (
Campbell Scott) is a well-educated, rich, and shy 28 year-old. As the film progresses, Victor's health worsens progressively, due to
leukemia. Despite his father's protests, Victor hires Hilary to be his live-in caretaker while he undergoes a traumatic course of
chemotherapy.
Hillary becomes insecure of her ability to care for Victor after her
first exposure to the side effects of his chemotherapy treatment. She
studies about leukemia and stocks healthier food in the kitchen.
He is "finished" with his
chemotherapy and suggests they take a vacation to the coast. They rent a house and
she begins to feel that she's no longer needed to care for him. They
fall in love and continue living at the coast.
He's hiding his use of morphine to kill the pain. During dinner with
one of the friends they made there Victor starts acting aggressively and
irrationally. Victor collapses and is helped to bed. She searches the
garbage and discovers his used syringes. She confronts him and he admits
he wasn't finished with his chemotherapy. He explains that he wants
quality in his life and she says that he's been lying to her.
She calls his Father and he comes to take him home but he wants to
stay for one last (Christmas) party. Hilary and Victor reconnect at the
party and he tells her that he is leaving with his father to go back to
the hospital in the morning. After speaking with Victor's father who
says Victor wants to spend one night alone before leaving, Hilary goes
back to the house they rented only to find Victor packing clothes, ready
to run away and not go with his father to the hospital. Hilary
confronts him about running away and Victor admits that he's afraid of
hoping. At this confession, Hilary finally tells Victor she loves him
and they then decide to go back to the hospital where he will fight for
his life with Hilary. The last frame of the movie shows Victor and
Hilary leaving the house, which has a small picture of
Gustav Klimt's "Adam and Eve" (the first painting Victor shows Hilary) in the window.
ReceptionThe film earned mixed reviews from critics, currently holding a 28% rating on
Rotten Tomatoes based on 18 reviews.
Dying Young grossed $33.6 million domestically and $48.6 million overseas to a grand total of $82.2 million worldwide.
External linkshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dying_Young